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26 years ago Julia Roberts delivered the iconic line ‘I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her’ in a Notting Hill book shop.
And two decades later the Hollywood star was back in her West London stomping ground.
The romcom icon was spotted at celebrity skin care expert Keren Bartov’s luxury clinic in the well-heeled London enclave on Wednesday evening, making sure she was looking radiant ahead of taping The Graham Norton Show.
In the movie Julia’s movie star character Anna Scott dons a hat and sunglasses in an attempt to go incognito during a browse at Hugh Grant’s travel bookshop.
And Julia took inspiration from Anna’s look for her Notting Hill return last week, teaming her camel-coloured sweater with a beanie hat and shades.
Whilst Julia was back in London last week, there’s little hope of her reuniting with Hugh Grant for a movie sequel.
Julia Roberts was spotted in London’s Notting Hill on Wednesday, 26 years after starring in the iconic romcom, in which she sported a very similar look (right)
Last year Notting Hill writer Richard Curtis revealed that Julia refused to take part in a sequel to the 1999 romcom because her character was supposed to get divorced.
The filmmaker shared that he initially proposed a storyline where her character Anna and Hugh’s character, William Thacker were separated, but Julia was not keen on the idea.
‘I tried doing one with Notting Hill where they were going to get divorced,’ Richard said. ‘Julia [Roberts] thought that was a very poor idea.’
The revelation follows the Pretty Woman star’s admission that she was initially uncomfortable with the role, almost turning it down entirely.
Julia told Vogue in a 2024 interview that she struggled with the character, who is a hot-tempered Hollywood actress.
Speaking to Curtis, Julia said: ‘Honestly, one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do was [Notting Hill], playing a movie actress. I was so uncomfortable!
‘I mean, we’ve talked about this so many times, but I almost didn’t take the part because it just seemed—oh, it just seemed so awkward. I didn’t even know how to play that person.’
Her discomfort with the character went beyond the acting, as Julia also had issues with her costume.
She was spotted at celebrity skin care expert Keren Bartov’s clinic in the well-heeled London enclave, making sure she was looking radiant ahead of taping The Graham Norton Show
Last year Notting Hill writer Richard Curtis revealed that Julia refused to take part in a sequel to the 1999 romcom because her character was supposed to get divorced from Hugh Grant
Julia told Vogue in a 2024 interview that she struggled with the character, who is a hot-tempered Hollywood actress
She said that she ‘loathed’ being dressed as a glamorous movie star and even took matters into her own hands for one key scene.
In the iconic moment where Anna rushes back to William and confesses, ‘I’m just a girl,’ the mother-of-three wore her own clothes instead of the movie’s wardrobe.
‘My driver, lovely Tommy, I sent him back to my flat that morning,’ she recalled.
‘I said, ‘Go into my bedroom and grab this, this, and this out of my closet.’ It was my own flip-flops, my cute little blue velvet skirt, a T-shirt, and my cardigan.’
Despite these initial struggles, both Roberts and her co-star Hugh Grant received Golden Globe nominations for their performances.
